Parent Handbook - Harford County Public Schools

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• All medication must be accompanied by a written health care provider’s order. These instructions must contain: the student’s name, name of the medication, the route of administration, the exact dosage, time and circumstances of administration, length of time the medication is to be continued, reason for administration, health care provider’s name, time and frequency of administration and date of order. Parents/guardians must also provide written authorization to administer medication to their child. For your convenience, a form for this purpose is available from the school nurse. No medication may be administered to a student without the required health care provider’s order and parent/guardian permission. Faxed medication orders are acceptable. In some circumstances orders written on health care provider’s letterhead or prescription pad is acceptable. • The parent/guardian should give the first dose of any new prescription or over the counter medication at home (except for emergency medication, e.g. Epi-Pen®). • Medication must be in its original prescription bottle, properly labeled by the pharmacy. Pharmacies can provide a second labeled bottle to accommodate medications that are given at school. Siblings may not share medication. • Discretionary medications are available for occasional use only to students who have a signed permission slip on file in the health suite. Acetaminophen, ibuprofen, diphenhydramine, antacid tablets and cough drops may be administered under the ordered protocols of the physician from the Harford County Health Department and at the discretion of the school nurse. • Over-the-counter medications that are required on a more than occasional basis must be accompanied by an order from an authorized health care provider and supplied and transported to the health suite by the parent/guardian. Parents/guardians or their designee must bring the medication to the school personally. Students are not permitted to carry medication on school buses or the school grounds. Under extenuating circumstances there may be exceptions. This is for the safety of all students. • If the health care provider feels that your child must carry and self-administer either an inhaler or Epi-Pen®, please have the health care provider complete the “Permission for Students to Carry/Self Administer Medications” form, stating the medical necessity for carrying the medication. The parent/guardian must also sign the form. This completed form must be given to the school nurse. The school nurse will notify all appropriate personnel when such exceptions are granted, including bus drivers. A copy of this form will be retained in the student’s confidential health folder. The Contract for Self- Administration of Medication must also be completed. Back-up medications must be kept in the health suite. • No medication will be stored over the summer. The parent/guardian must pick up all medication by the end of the school day on the last day of school. Any remaining medication not picked up by a parent/guardian will be destroyed. No medication will be sent home with a student. • A new health care provider’s order and parent/guardian permission form is required for medications at the beginning of each new school year, and for any changes during the school year. • Students are permitted to carry cough drops, but must have written parent/guardian permission. No health care provider’s order is required. To ensure the safety of the student taking medications, as well as other students, the following apply: • All medications are kept in a locked cabinet in the health suite at all times. • Medication must be taken in the presence of the school nurse, principal, or designee. • Records are maintained documenting the medication taken, date, time, and the person who administered it. Immunization requirements can be found under Registering Your Child For School, page 17. Home And Hospital Instruction Home and hospital instruction is a teaching and learning temporary program when a child is unable to attend school because of illness, accident, or emotional impairment. FOR THE STUDENT . . . • Students will be given a minimum of six hours of instruction per week. • Books will be provided by the school. • At quarterly intervals, progress will be assessed and will become part of the school report card grade. FOR THE PARENT . . . • There is no charge for this service. • The service is provided for physically and/or emotionally impaired students. • A physician or psychiatrist/psychologist must verify that the child is unable to attend school. • Home teaching will begin at the time of verification of the need. FOR THE SCHOOL . . . • The school will be contacted by the home teacher immediately after being assigned. • The school coordinator of home teaching will gather the lessons, plans, books, etc., for the home teacher. • Just prior to the end of each marking period, the school will receive grades from the home teacher. • Home teaching grades will be averaged into the grades earned while the student was in school. FOR THE HOME TEACHER . . . • The home teacher will contact the school to make arrangements to pick up books and materials. • The home teacher will arrange with the student and her/his family a mutually agreed-upon schedule. • The home teacher will be responsible for submitting progress reports to the school. • The home teacher will notify the area Student Services Office and the school of the termination of the home teaching program. • The home teacher will return all books and materials to the school. Homework Properly planned homework assignments should relate directly to class work and extend learning beyond the classroom. Effective homework assignments teach students to become independent learners. While it is recognized that student achievement improves significantly when teachers regularly assign homework and students conscientiously complete assignments, homework has other important purposes. Homework provides the students valuable experiences in following directions, making judgments, raising additional questions for study, and developing responsibility and self-discipline. Additionally, homework is a means to communicate to parents regarding current class activities and topics of study. 1. Appropriateness of Homework Homework should be appropriate to the age, ability, and independent level of students. Student characteristics including grade level, motivation, and study habits must be considered. 2. Assignment Characteristics and Initial Classroom Factors Teachers should ensure that students understand the purpose of each homework assignment. The amount of homework, the skills to be reinforced, and completion deadlines influence student outcomes. 12
Because homework is a valuable instructional tool, care must be taken to provide materials which are readable and directions which are clear. 3. Types of Assignments Taking into consideration the directions that students need in order to successfully complete their homework, it is reasonable to expect that assignments can extend learning beyond the classroom in a number of ways. Types of assignments may include the following: a. The PRACTICE assignment reinforces previous learning and should be adapted to the ability and progress of each student. b. EXTENSION assignments allow students to go beyond memorization of content and provide for the transfer of learning to a new situation which requires students to apply previously learned skills. c. CREATIVE assignments ask students to integrate skills and concepts in order to generate a new response. d. REVIEW assignments enable students to clarify concepts and to gain an overview of material that has been taught. 4. Approximate Hours for Homework Completion At the primary level, homework should collectively range from two to three hours weekly but not exceed one-half hour a night. At the intermediate level, homework should collectively range from three to five hours weekly but not exceed fortyfive minutes a night. In the middle school, homework time should approximate a collective range from four to eight hours weekly but not more than two hours per night. High school homework time should collectively range from five to twelve hours weekly but not more than three hours per night. Teachers should use these time approximations as a reference when considering homework assignments. In addition, teachers should be mindful that students who are accountable to more than one teacher will have homework from more than one subject or class. Homework may be assigned over weekends. 5. Holiday Homework Homework is not to be assigned over holidays when public schools are closed. 6. Classroom Follow-up Teachers must consistently monitor and assess homework assignments. In addition to testing related content or using assignments in class discussions, feedback should be provided in the form of written comments, grades, or incentives. High Schools Middle Schools* Elem. Schools** John Archer Prekindergarten a.m. session*** Prekindergarten p.m. session*** Hours Of Operation Starting Time Dismissal 7:30 a.m. 2:00 p.m. 8:15 a.m. 2:45 p.m. 9:00 a.m. 3:30 p.m. 9:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. 9:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. 1:00 p.m. 3:30 p.m. * North Harford Middle School will continue to operate on the same schedule as North Harford High School. ** Havre de Grace, William S. James, and Deerfield elementary schools will operate on the 4th tier busing schedule, 9:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. *** 4th tier busing schedule for prekindergarten, 9:30 a.m. - noon; 1:30 p.m.- 4:00 p.m. Inclement Weather Policy All public schools in Harford County will be closed on days when roads, school parking lots, and/or school driveways/ walkways are considered to be unsafe for school bus transportation/student, staff use. The decision to close is made by the Superintendent of Schools as early as possible on the morning in question. In the vast majority of cases, this is prior to 6:00 a.m. The determination is made after consulting with the state police, the sheriff’s office, the state and county highway departments, and other sources of information in different parts of the county. Some weather conditions make it advisable to delay the opening time of schools. • If schools are delayed one hour, morning half-day prekindergarten will start at 10:00 a.m.; afternoon half-day prekindergarten will proceed as originally scheduled. • If schools are delayed two hours there will be no morning half-day prekindergarten or early intervention programs; afternoon half-day prekindergarten will proceed as originally scheduled. (All times will be a half hour later for fourth tier busing schools.) If elementary schools have a scheduled teachers’ planning early dismissal and there is a two-hour delay due to inclement weather, students will NOT be dismissed early but will remain in school for the regular school day. Any change from the normal school schedule as a result of inclement weather - snow, ice, heat, etc. - will be communicated through our rapid telephone notification system, email, Twitter and on radio and television stations broadcasts to the public. In addition, closings will be listed on the HCPS website at www.hcps.org. Parents are invited to listen to one of the following stations when inclement weather conditions prevail: WAMD (970), Aberdeen; WLIF-FM (101.9), Baltimore; WBAL (1090), Baltimore; WPOC-FM (93.1), Baltimore; WCBM (680), Baltimore; WXYV-FM (105.7), Baltimore; WSBA (910), York, PA; WWMX-FM (106.5), Baltimore; WARM-FM (103), York, PA; WXCY-FM (103.7), Havre de Grace; WDAC-FM (94.5), Lancaster, PA; WERQ-FM (92.3), Baltimore; and TV Stations - CH 2, 11, 13, 45. Parents have the right not to send their children to school if they feel travel conditions are unsafe. The student will be marked as lawfully absent. The announcement will be made only when schools will be closed or when there are delayed openings or early closings. No telephone calls or media announcements will be made when schools are open as usual. In order to keep school telephone lines open for emergency calls, parents are urged not to call the school concerning the possibility of early closing. This information will be reported as soon as possible over the official stations listed and on the HCPS website (www.hcps.org) and through email and the automated telephone system. If it is necessary to close the school(s) for reasons such as power failures or other emergencies, information will be communicated through the above listed radio and television stations, on the HCPS website, by the automated telephone system, email or the public can call the HCPS switchboard after hours at 410-838-7300. Integrated Pest Management And Notification Of Pesticide Use In A Public School Building And On School Grounds Integrated pest management (IPM) is a system of controlling pests that does not depend on the automatic application of pesticides. As implemented by Harford County Public Schools, pests are monitored by regular and careful 13
Page 1 and 2: 2011-2012 Parent-Student Handbook a
Page 3 and 4: Dear HCPS Community: This handbook
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Page 7 and 8: II. Lawful/Unlawful Absences and Ta
Page 9 and 10: VII. Information Dissemination Stud
Page 11 and 12: student’s school record. In addit
Page 13 and 14: Penalties Suspension and Expulsion
Page 15: Graduation Requirements (For the cl
Page 19 and 20: The Lead and Copper Rule required s
Page 21 and 22: eligible students should submit a w
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Parent Handbook - Harford County Public Schools

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